Bears Hire Phil Emery To Be New GM

The Chicago Bears have hired Phil Emery to be the fifth general manager in team history, the team announced Saturday.

Emery has 31 years of experience working in football, including the last 14 in the NFL. He's coming off a three-year stint as the Kansas City Chiefs' director of college scouting, but he's returning to his roots, as his first NFL job was an area scout for the Bears from 1998-2004. He also spent time in the Atlanta Falcons' front office from 2004-2009, serving as the team's director of college scouting as well as a regional scout.

The Bears interviewed four other candidates before choosing Emery: Patriots director of pro personnel Jason Licht, who was considered a finalist for the job, Chargers director of pro personnel Jimmy Raye, Giants director of college scouting Marc Ross and Bears director of player personnel Tim Ruskell.

Emery is replacing Jerry Angelo, who was fired after 10 years on the job when the Bears lost five of their last six to finish with an 8-8 record.

For more on Chicago, check out Bears blog Windy City Gridiron. For the Kansas City perspective on Emery, check out Chiefs blog Arrowhead Pride.

The search for a new Chicago Bears general manager continues as the end of January draws near, but the list of candidates appears to be getting narrower.

According to Jeff Dickerson at ESPN Chicago, the Bears are going to be conducting two more interviews this week. On Thursday, the team will be conducting their second interview with New England Patriots director of pro personnel Jason Licht. Licht first interviewed for the position with the Bears on January 16, as part of the first wave of candidates.

Also returning for his second interview will be Kansas City Chiefs director of college scouting Phil Emery. Emery will interview again on Friday.

As Dickerson points out, Licht will need to convince the Bears that there are benefits to hiring a younger GM who also happens to be a true "outsider" as the job is concerned. Although Licht has a fine track record in his time with the New England, Miami, Carolina, Philadelphia and Arizona franchises, Emery has been in football for 31 years and previously worked for the Bears as a scout from 1998-2004.

For more on Licht and the Patriots, please visit Pats Pulpit. For a Chiefs perspective, check out Arrowhead Pride.

It is only a matter of hammering out the details before the Chicago Bears hire Phil Emery as their new general manager, according to Bob McGinn of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Emery is the Kansas City Chiefs' director of college scouting for the moment. The Bears fired former GM Jerry Angelo earlier this month after losing five of their last six regular season games.

Emery was an area scout for the Bears from 1998 to 2004 before moving onto the Atlanta Falcons and eventually the Chiefs. Replacing Angelo won't be easy. Despite his team's recent struggles, Angelo did oversee three division titles in his 10-plus years in Chicago, as well as a Super Bowl run during the 2006-07 season.

Emery spent just three seasons in Kansas City after being hired by Scott Pioli prior to the 2009 season.

For more on Emery and the Bears, check out the SB Nation blog Windy City Gridiron. For a Chiefs perspective, check out Arrowhead Pride.